Are You Digitally Dominant?

Technology can either be a boon or a bane, depending on how it is used. I suppose hardly anyone will say out loud that they are addicted to digital devices, but it seems that the dangers of this kind of addiction are very much real.

In a recent study conducted by dnx, a digital marketing agency, the terms techno-addict and digitally dominant have come up, both referring to individuals whose lives revolve around communication via text, email, video calls, and other digital means. ((Source))

However, just because you use your smartphone, tablet computer, laptop, or desktop computer a lot for your communication needs, it does not necessarily mean you are digitally dominant, does it? Furthermore, it is not necessarily a bad thing if you use those devices heavily.

The problem arises when digitally dominant equates to such figures as going 48 hours without speaking to other people face to face. On a regular basis.

Now stop for a moment and analyze your habits. How long do you go without seeing another person’s face in real life?

The study involved 1,000 British adults, 16 percent of whom were found to be digitally dominant. On top of using personal digital devices for communication, these individuals also professed their preference of dealing with automated services. For example, instead of dealing with a human ticket collector, they prefer to “encounter” an automatic barrier. They also prefer to get food from a vending machine rather than, say, a lunch lady. Unsurprisingly, digitally dominant people also do most of their shopping online. With the amount of online stores today, this is only understandable, yes?

So, are you digitally dominant? Are you worried about its implications, or do you think it’s all part of human progress?